“It was a project. We did something like 40, 50 shoes,” Weitzman tells PEOPLE of the undertaking, which encompasses all of Beyoncé’s footwear changes, as well as the shoes for her backup dancers and band. “We made her beautiful jeweled pumps, ankle boot lace-ups with metal trim on them … that are very sexy. We made her these boots up to the thigh that have a military influence. Those are the three principal designs, in lots of colors.”

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And Weitzman says he and Beyoncé work equally hard to make sure she’s able to hit the dance floor pain-free. “What Beyoncé specifically pays attention to is being able to [wear the shoes] without noticing they’re on her feet,” he says. “She doesn’t want her feet to burn, so we can’t have too thin of a sole, but [she asks for] the build-up inside the shoe so it doesn’t look too heavy. The public doesn’t see or think about that, but Beyoncé does.”

By this point, Weitzman has her wish list memorized. “I’ve been doing shoes for so long for her, we’ve learned what she needs,” he says, naming a list that includes heels “of a special width for her to dance on,” rubberized soles “so she’s not slippin’ and slidin’ around” and extra padding inside.

So what makes their partnership such a special, long-lasting one? “She really is interested in the way the shoe feels on her foot,” Weitzman says. “She absolutely has the impression of not being willing to suffer, no matter how the shoe looks on her foot.”
Tell us: What do you think of the Mrs. Carter tour shoes so far? Are you excited to see them live?

–Alex Apatoff

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